Can you remember being 12 years old? What were you concerned about most at that point in your young life? Perhaps it was who would ask you to the middle school dance? Maybe you were busy plotting strategies to beat the latest video game or scrounging enough money to see a movie.

Will Kenney is 12, and he just spent the past few months raising more than $5,000 for the Sturge-Weber Foundation — with no incentives or prizes to motivate him.

Wait, what foundation is that, you ask?

Sturge-Weber, as you probably did not already know, is a rare syndrome that affects 1 in 50,000 people. It's a life-altering congenital condition that is caused by an overabundance of capillaries, or tiny blood vessels. Just below the surface of the skin, it can cause purplish-red port wine birthmarks, but when it occurs on the surface of the brain, it becomes more serious, leading to seizures, vision problems, developmental delays and more.

The third case to be diagnosed in Delaware is (not quite) 3-year-old Stella Hastings, an adorable little girl who at this point is just what you'd expect in a self-assured toddler. But her doctor calls her a ticking time bomb. The struggles she and her family have experienced are chronicled on Facebook.

Kenney's mother, a friend of the Hastings family, shared that saga with her son, and that was the inspiration for this young man's success story. Setting aside the more mundane concerns of most middle-schoolers, Will Kenney took it upon himself to raise money and awareness. The result is more than a little bit impressive.

Last winter, he conceived and hosted Will's Carnival for a Cause, setting for himself an ambitious goal of $5,000. He solicited money and donations, and in August the carnival raised $5,800.

Ambitious because the cause he was advocating for is not well-known, or at least, it wasn't until Kenney took it up.

First he had to educate himself about Sturge-Weber Syndrome. Then he had to educate mostly everyone he approached before he could ask for help — and that included his classmates and friends.

What Kenney has accomplished goes well beyond an impressive fund-raising effort. He rallied his community in support of his effort, set a goal, gathered information and resources and he ultimately exceeded his goal. And he isn't resting on his laurels.

Instead, Kenney is doubling his goal going into 2015. That's right — he plans to raise $10,000 for the cause in 2015. There's no reason to think he won't accomplish just that.

This resourceful young man's persistence and dedication are truly inspiring.